What Was The Kid From Insidious Up To Before Returning In The Red Door?
Ty Simpkins is one of the most fascinating young actors working today, with a career spanning two decades despite being too young to legally rent a car. The 21-year-old made his television acting debut as a three-week-old infant on "One Life to Live," before making his feature film debut in Steven Spielberg's "War of the Worlds" as a toddler. However, it was his role as Dalton Lambert in "Insidious" that really put him on the map, playing a son haunted by the demonic forces from within the Further. Many child stars have a conflicting relationship with the horror roles that made them famous, but Simpkins is returning this year to the role for "Insidious: The Red Door," more than a decade after his first appearance in the franchise.
And this isn't a situation like Alex Vincent of the "Child's Play" and "Chucky" franchise, who returned to the role that made him a household name in horror after years of keeping out of the public light. Simpkins has stayed pretty busy, appearing in some of the biggest releases of the decade across a wide range of genres. He'll definitely always have a place in the hearts of horror fans everywhere, but here's what Ty Simpkins has been up to since his last venture into the Further.
Blockbuster franchise appearances
Three years after the first "Insidious" film hit theaters, Simpkins made his debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe in "Iron Man 3" as Harley Keener. For those who need a refresher, Harley Keener is the Tennessee teenager that Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) runs into when seeking shelter in a random garage. The two quickly develop a solid rapport, and Keener decides to help Stark on his mission to prevent a series of terrorist attacks fueled by the Extremis program. He tends to the Mark XLII Armor when Tony Stark isn't around and even helps him track down the villainous Mandarin (Ben Kingsley). It's implied that Keener and Stark kept in touch after the events of "Iron Man 3," as he appeared in "Avengers: Endgame" at Stark's funeral ceremony.
Two years after "Iron Man 3," Simpkins joined another legacy franchise by playing Gray Mitchell in "Jurassic World." Gray and his brother Zach (Nick Robinson) were granted access to the Jurassic World park because their aunt Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) served as the operations manager at the time. However, they explore the Restricted Area after being told not to and come face to face with the Indominus rex, a genetically modified hybrid dinosaur who has escaped her paddock. The two narrowly elude her clutches, and much of the film centers on their survival as the dinosaurs overrun the park and the dense wilderness of Isla Nublar.
The Nice Guys and taking it to the stage
In his follow-up to "Jurassic World," Simpkins nabbed a small but vital role in Shane Black's "The Nice Guys." The film opens with Simpkins' character Bobby sneaking around his parents' room, looking for a pornographic magazine. As he walks the hallway of his home, admiring the image of Misty Mountains (Murielle Telio), he just barely misses being crushed by a car barrelling down a hill and through his family home. He goes outside to explore the wreckage, only to find the real Misty Mountains amidst the wreckage, just as nude as her centerfold. He covers her dead body with his own pajama shirt, thus beginning the neo-noir action comedy and the mysteries at the center of the story.
It's important to remember that although a successful child actor, Simpkins still had responsibilities like school to attend to. He took a minor step back from the screen for a few years following "The Nice Guys," but did take to the musical theater stage. He played the Nazi smuggler Ernst in a production of "Cabaret," and later the grifting conman Rooster in "Annie." Outside of his cameo appearance in "Avengers: Endgame," Simpkins wouldn't appear on-screen again (other than a short film and archival footage in "Insidious: The Last Key") until 2021 with the indie folk horror film, "Where's Rose."
Missionary work in The Whale
Most recently, Ty Simpkins appeared in the A24 film "The Whale," the picture that earned Brendan Fraser the Oscar for Best Actor. In it, Simpkins played Thomas, a missionary for the New Life Church who feels compelled to try and "save" Fraser's Charlie. Charlie's best friend and nurse Liz (Hong Chau), as well as his daughter Ellie (Sadie Sink) both hate Thomas' frequent visits, but he is convinced that his mission is to help Charlie. One day, Thomas hangs out with Ellie one-on-one, and the two smoke weed together, and the lack of inhibition inspires him to confess to having stolen money from his youth group and run away from home and the church.
Ellie informs his youth group and family of the truth, and due to their forgiveness, Thomas plans on moving back home. During his last visit with Charlie, he tries to preach to him, but his homophobic beliefs get him kicked to the curb. "The Whale" is an extremely complicated and decidedly fatphobic film, but Simpkins' role as Thomas is important because the film implies that all of the people surrounding Charlie are complicit in his death. Did Thomas actually re-find his faith after meeting Charlie, or was he trying to make nice in the hopes that he'd claim Charlie's wealth after he dies? After all, conman lingo often refers to people with lots of money as "whales."
But now, Simpkins is back in the role that helped establish his career in Hollywood, with "Insidious: The Red Door" now in theaters.